CUNY Selected for Program Aimed At Ending Campus Antisemitism
by Dion J. Pierre
The B. Altman & Company Building housing the City University of New York Graduate Center in New York City. Photo Credit: Beyond My Ken/Wikimedia.
Seventeen colleges and universities across the United States will participate in Hillel International’s Campus Climate Initiative (CCI) this academic year, the organization announced Friday.
The City University of New York (CUNY), where Jewish students teachers and staff have raised concerns about antisemitism for many years, was among the campuses selected for CCI’s 2022-2023 cohort.
CCI’s aim is to help universities better understand, recognize, and combat anti-Jewish discrimination on campus.
Over 40 college and universities have participated in the program since 2021, according to Hillel International’s website. Among the other schools selected this year include Yale University, Goucher College, Leigh University and San Francisco State University.
In a press release, CUNY Chancellor Felix V. Matos Rodriguez acknowledged that “more needs to be done” to fight antisemitism.
“I’m proud of our growing partnership with Hillel International and grateful that the organization selected our campuses for their Campus Climate Initiative, which works to end antisemitism and build safe learning environments in which all students can thrive, regardless of race or religion,” he continued.
During CUNY’s membership in the program, the school will create a webpage where students can report antisemitism. The university will also appropriate $750,000 for events that promote inclusiveness and expand its student exchange programs and academic partnerships with Israeli universities.
Other schools participating in Campus Climate Initiative this academic year include Goucher College, Lehigh University, San Francisco State University, and Yale University.
“The challenges of antisemitic hate, harassment, and marginalization on campus require awareness and commitment to change by university leaders,” Hillel Vice President for University Initiatives & Legal Affairs Mark Rotenberg said on September 16, when this year’s CCI cohort was announced.
